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Environmental Science & Management Research Guide

Introduction

Planning information includes primary and secondary information about natural and human systems, laws and regulations affecting the planning process, planning practices, and the results of planning activities. Below are listed:

  1. major literature sources that focus on natural resource planning and
  2. key reference sources for identifying research, professional and practical information in planning
  3. legal resources
  4. statistical and environmental data resources.

 

Planning Literature

The following section lists some of the major planning research journals and popular magazines. It also includes information on how to find urban, regional and other plans. For information on scientific literature see in general see Literature of Science.

Journals 

  • Below are journals available through the HSU Library. Check the Journal and Newspaper Finder for exact holdings and location. See Finding Articles for databases that index individual articles in these journals and other related journals.

    Applied Geography
    Cities
    Environment and Behavior
    Environmental Conservation
    Environmental Impact Assessment Review
    Environmental Management
    Habitat International
    Int. Journal of Urban & Regional Research
    Journal of Applied Ecology
    Journal of Environmental Assessment Policy & Mgt.
    Journal of Environmental Planning & Mgt.
    Journal of Environmental Policy & Planning
    Journal of Planning Education and Research
    Journal of Planning History
    Journal of Planning Literature
    Journal of Regional Sciences
    Journal of Rural Studies
    Journal of the American Planning Association
    Journal of Urban Planning and Development
    Land Economics
    Land Use Policy
    Landscape
    Landscape & Urban Planning
    Landscape Ecology
    Natural Areas Journal
    Ocean & Coastal Management
    Park Science
    Planning & Environmental Law
    Planning Commissioner's Journal
    Planning Practice and Research
    Planning Theory
    Policy Studies Journal
    Policy Studies Review
    Progress in Planning
    Regional Studies
    Renewable Resources Journal
    Urban Ecology
    Urban Studies
    URISA Journal
     

Magazines & Newsletters 

California Coast and Ocean (California Coastal Conservancy)
High Country News
Planning (American Planning Association)

Plans - To locate city and county general plans in the HSU Library search the HSU Library Catalog

  1. By subject:
    city planning-California-[city or county name]
    regional planning-California-[city or county name]
  2. By title:
    Search "general plan" using the Keyword search option

California Local Planning Documents Database (UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies Library) Searchable database of city and county planning documents available in the Institute of Governmental Studies Library. Searchable by jurisdiction, element (e.g. housing, open space) and year adopted. One can also limit to plans available on the web.


For local plans available in online fulltext format see Humboldt Room Links: Government and Community Services.

Reference Materials

Guides

  • California Planning and Development Report (CP and DR) regarded as the authoritative periodical on planning and development issues - required reading for planners, land-use lawyers, developers, environmentalists, citizen activists, and others interested and involved in the process of planning and development in California.
  • Guides to City and Regional Planning Research (UC Berkeley, Environmental Design Library) Lists planning resources available at UC Berkeley and on the Internet. The HSU Library has some of the print resources.
  • California Center for Land Recycling (CCLR) focused on creating sustainable communities by encouraging and facilitating land recycling to revitalize urban areas, discourage urban sprawl, and conserve greenspace

Directories

  • California Counties' Websites (California State Association of Counties)
  • California Planners' Book of Lists (Annual) (California. Office of Planning and Research) Directory of city and other planning agencies as well as other planning related information.
  • California Roster (California Secretary of State) Annual (print copy available in ref JK 8730 R67) Directory of state, county, and city agencies and officials.
  • Cities Online (League of California Cities)

Dictionaries & Encyclopedias

Bibliographies

  • Bibliography of Landscape Architecture, Environmental Design and Planning (Powell) 1987 (SB 472 P68)
  • HUD User Database (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Policy Development and Research) Bibliographic database covering housing and community development issues. It contains more than 10,000 references to research reports, articles, books, monographs, and data sources in housing policy, building technology, economic development, urban planning, and other related fields.
  • Journal of Planning Literature (HSU users only) Each issue includes several review articles on specific topics and a bibliography of recent planning literature gleaned from 49 journals. Each bibliography is arranged by broad planning topics with more specific author and subject indexes.
  • "Planning Literature Information Service" IN Planning Practice & Research (HSU users only) Lists articles from 30 planning journals under 10 subject categories: Planning Theory and History; Methodology; Modelling and Information Systems; Economic and Property Development; The Built Environment; Enviornment, Energy and Nature; Transport; Housing and Community Development; Urban and Regional Planning; Rural Planning; Public Administration, Public Policy and Professional Concerns.

Handbooks & Manuals

Geospatial Resources (Atlases, Maps, GIS, Imagery)

  • See Geospatial Resources for print and digital geospatial resources available in the HSU Library or on the Internet.

 

Legal Resources

General

California

 

Internet Subject Guides/Portals/Gateways

Statistical & Environmental Data

Listed below are some of the important guides to statistical and environmental data compilations that are an essential part of planning research.

General

  • Center for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN) Contains an extensive collection of global, regional and national datasets that focus on human interactions in the environment.
  • CEOS International Directory Network (IDN) "Gateway" directory to worldwide earth science data and services.
  • EarthTrends: the Environmental Information Portal (World Resources Institute) Contains information on the environmental, social, and economic trends that shape the world. Organized into themes with each theme including data, country profiles, maps and feature article sections. The country profiles section includes charts, graphs and vital statistics for each country. Themes include coastal and marine ecosystems; water resources and freshwater ecosystems; climate and atmosphere; population, health and human well-being; economics, business and the environment; energy and resources; biodiversity and protected areas; agriculture and food; forests, grasslands and drylands; environmental government and institutions; and poverty resources.
  • Statistical Sites on the World Wide Web (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics) Lists sources of federal and international statistics
  • Digital Spatial Data (HSU Library) Lists guides to geospatial data available on the Internet. Listed under the following categories--World, United States, California, California (northwestern).
  • UNdata (United Nations) Contains current and historical statistics collected by UN agencies. Organized by theme and then by country. Also includes individual Country Profiles,and links to the major statistical agency in each country.

United States (may also include California statistics)

  • Census Data (US Census Bureau) Population, housing, economic, and geographic data from the decennial census of population and housing, the economic census, and the annual American Community Survey (ACS).
  • Data.gov (US Government) Allows users to find, download, and use datasets that are generated and held by the federal government.
  • Econdata.Net (Andrew Reamer & Associates and Impresa) Guide to regional socioeconomic data sources on the web, arranged by subject and provider.
  • Guide to U.S. Government Statistics (Andriot) 1987 (Docs Abstract Z 7554 U5 G8 1987) Annotated guide to 12,500 government statistical publications.
  • Guide to Rural Data (Salant and Waller) 1995 (Ref HB 2385 S25 1995) Guide to data sources that can be used in rural community development.
  • Statistics and Data for City Planning (UC Berkeley Environmental Design Library)
  • US Census Bureau Subjects A to Z (U.S. Census Bureau) A to Z index that includes subjects and titles of census reports.
  • USA.gov: Data and Statistics (US Government)

California

  • "California: the Golden State" IN Profiles of America: Facts, Figures and Statistics for Every Populated Place in the United States (Grey House) 2003 (ref HT 123 P7624 2003) Contains facts and statistics on the geography, weather, history, heath, population, religion, crime, economics, education, housing, and transportation for each California county. Also includes similar profiles for each incorporated municipality and many other census designated places and unincorporated places. Includes an alphabetical place name index.
  • California Environmental Information Catalog (CERES) Contains descriptions (metadata) of California environmental data available from many contributors including cities, counties, utilities, state and federal agencies, private businesses, and academic institutions. The basic catalog is searchable by resource title, contributing organization, resource type, subject keyword, or geographic region.
  • California Environment Information Sources (HSU Library)

Northwestern California